And So We Rise
by DeathBladeVI
Summary: Their world burns. And yet, Humanity strives, reaching the skies, and then the stars. A warrior race, how shall Humanity handle the Citadel? And how will the galaxy handle these newcomers, who are not afraid to go to war with them?
1. And So It Begins

2277-Lone Wanderer forced to flee from Vault 101, in order to find father. Battle of Hoover Dam occurs with an NCR victory.

2278-The Lone Wanderer, after months of journeying through hell, including being abducted by aliens, having part of his brain removed in Point Lookout, ending a slave uprising in the Pitt, gaining the trust of the Outcasts, amongst other things, finds his father. His father then makes contact with the Enclave, which leads to James death and the Lone Wanderer forced to flee to the Citadel. Gathering the Brotherhood, he manages to recapture Jefferson Memorial, and with that, kills Augustus Autumn. Two weeks later, he and Liberty Prime destroy Raven Rock, and the remaining leadership of the Enclave sue for peace. Major Samantha Adams orders a ceasefire, then to the surprise of the Capital Wasteland, an alliance between the remaining Enclave forces on the East Coast and the Capital Brotherhood.

2279-The Enclave and the Brotherhood merge into one alliance, simply called the Remnants. The Capital then brings in all the settlements of the Capital Wasteland into the Remnants. The Remnants then conduct a cleaning, wiping out the majority of Super Mutants in the Wasteland, and making sure that every town is able to sustain itself. Trade is booming, the water caravans are safer, and raiders are becoming less of a threat, especially with Enclave and Brotherhood forces making patrols into territory once owned by them. The Outcasts are then drawn in, becoming the R&D Division of the Remnants Military.

2280-The Remnants expand north and south, taking control of the majority of the Eastern Seaboard. The Pitt voluntarily is absorbed into the Remnants. New York proves to be stubborn, resulting in a five month campaign against the raiders, before the superior firepower of the Remnants triumphs. The Eastern Seaboard falls before the year is over. Research from the Outcasts focus on improving the landscape. Three G.E. found in scattered vaults bring new life to the Eastern Seaboard.

2281-The man known as the Courier awakes, after being shot in the head twice. After killing Benny, he finds himself into the power struggle for New Vegas. He activates the Securitron Army, kills Mr. House and Caesar, before defeating both armies in a major battle at Hoover Dam. The Legion is defeated, but not broken, retreats across the Colorado in order to lick its wounds. The NCR is also similarly defeated but not broken, retreating to the Mojave Outpost. The Courier, with his allies, the Enclave Remnants, the Brotherhood of Steel, the Boomers, and other factions, take control of the Mojave. The Courier is then placed as the Ruler of the Mojave, though he is fair in his dealings.

2282-Courier incorporates the Divide into his territory, killing the tunnelers and the marked men, and gains control of its nuclear arsenal. Ulysses then becomes his right hand man, commanding the small military that the Courier has. The Courier then takes control of Big Mountain, and the Think Tank become his scientists, with orders to look into space travel. Zion then becomes his territory as well, with Joshua Graham as its representative.

2283-The Remnants later becomes the Eastern Alliance, and then launches a campaign of expansion towards the east, where they meet the Midwestern Brotherhood of Steel. The Midwestern Brotherhood of Steel is then absorbed as well, while the Enclave in Chicago follow the same route as their former enemies. The Eastern Alliance is then drawn into their first major war. The revitalized Legion strikes, capturing half of the Midwestern Brotherhood territory, before being pushed back. The Alliance then counterattack, conquering the Legion in a span of a few months, due to bigger numbers, better tech, and air supremacy. The Lone Wanderer, a Company commander in the Army of the Alliance, marries Samantha Adams. The Courier later marries Cass.

2284-The Eastern Alliance meets with the Vegas Confederacy, and within three weeks, strike an alliance. Vegas is then attacked by the New California Republic, whose massive waves of infantry and armor manage to penetrate deep into its territory, before again, being pushed back. The invasion of California is then announced, leading to a two year campaign that leaves thousands dead.

2285-The Western Brotherhood of Steel goes to war with the Eastern Alliance, due to the Elders not submitting to their command. The Eastern Alliance conquer Lost Hills before pushing the Western Brotherhood of Steel to the north. San Francisco and Shady Sands then surrender, after the Alliance threatens to unleash nuclear warfare.

2286-The last city of the New California Republic, Junktown, surrenders after President Kimball is assassinated by the Stealth Corps of the Alliance. With the defeat of the NCR, the Eastern Alliance reorganizes itself into the North Alliance.

2287-The Alliance makes contact with the Imperial Guard, the military force of the Japanese Empire. The Japanese Empire controls the Pacific entirely, and the North Alliance signs a treaty with them. The two then becomes allies. The Lone Wanderer celebrates the birth of his child, a daughter, while the Courier celebrates the birth of his first child, a son.

2288-The Empire and the Alliance make contact with the Chinese, who soon submit to their power. The Empire then launches an invasion of Asia, with Alliance support. The Alliance provides air support. Big Mountain, with the ghouls of the Bright Brotherhood, test their first rocket launch. A huge success. The ghouls then land on the moon, claiming it for the Alliance.

2289-The Empire is then shocked when their Emperor and his entire line is destroyed by a nuclear device in their capital. This leads to a civil war, and the Alliance steps in and takes control of the Empire. The Empire's people are then absorbed into the Alliance.

2293-With much of Asia under the Alliance's control, they make contact with the New Russian Republic, where, to the surprise of many, they go to war due to communication errors. The Russians lose control of Siberia, but the Lone Wanderer, now in his thirties, manages to work out a ceasefire. The Alliance soons launches an invasion of India, which is a success.

2295-The Russians launch an attack on Europe, which is divided into petty kingdoms. The Alliance launches an invasion of Africa, but due to high amounts of radiation and extremely hostile people, half of the surviving continent is declared no-settlement zone, while the rest of Africa is fought over between the Alliance, the Kingdom of Rhodesia, and raider clans.

2297-The Russians reach the English Channel, which to the surprise of many, is repelled by the Royal Navy. The United Kingdom, was not attacked at all it would seem, due to it being totally isolated. The United Kingdom then launches an assault on Russian forces in Europe, before taking control of France, the Low Countries, Spain, and Germany. The Russians then calls on the Alliance to help them. The Alliance, which controls North America, the Pacific, and Asia, sides with the United Kingdom, before taking control of the Russian Republics. The United Kingdom, grateful for its help, is then absorbed into the Alliance. London becomes the new capital of the Alliance. The Alliance then crushes resistance in Southern Africa and takes Egypt, allowing the world to for the first time in its history, be united.

2300-At the dawn of the new century, Earth is fast repopulating. At the first global census in over three hundred years, the Earth now has sixty million and growing. Resources are becoming scarce, but that is solved when the ghouls of the Bright Brotherhood and Alliance astronauts start to mine the moon.

2310-The Lone Wanderer, now almost sixty years old, celebrates the birth of his daughter. The Courier, a little younger, celebrates the birth of his son.

2335-The Moon is then colonized by the Alliance. The Alliance is then able to launch an expedition to Mars, where it unearths a cache of technology from what are known as the Protheans. Humanity is now known as the Systems Alliance, and the Armed Forces of the Alliance are reorganized into four branches. The Army. The Marines. The Navy. The Air Force. Using the technology, they colonize the rest of the Sol System, before discovering something that is called a Mass Relay. Activating it, they also construct their first space station. The first colony is established on Mars, transformed by a Garden of Eden Creation Kit. Human repopulation is encouraged by the Alliance, and soon, Humanity reaches over one hundred million humans for the first time since the Great War.

2345-The Alliance has grown, now consisting of over a one hundred fifty million, hundreds of thousands of intelligent super mutants, and thousands of ghouls. Super Mutants are cured of their sterility, while ghouls are no longer in danger of becoming feral. The Alliance has established over six colonies. The Navy, is fitted with laser weapons as well, while the Vertibirds are made space worthy. Big Mountain starts research into modifying the holograms from the Sierra Madre. Their research hits snags and dents, by the end of the year 2400, holograms are finally able to be used as mobile defense guards that aren't hostile to everything.

2355-The Lone Wanderer dies. His children and grandchildren mourn the death of Admiral Adam Shepard, the Hero of the Alliance. His wife dies as well, due to depression.

2356-The Courier dies. Cass later dies. The Alliance goes into mourning, due to the deaths of their four heros in a span of less than a year. The first Alliance warship is constructed, named the Vegas Shuffle. It is classified as a frigate. Colonies are being established on five different planets, and more and more human children are being born every year.

2400-Humanity reaches over one billion humans. Super Mutants, though encouraged as well to breed, only breed to keep their numbers leveled, as directed by Fawkes, their leader in the Alliance Parliament. Ghouls, for the first time, reach one million of their species.

2455-Humanity as activated over eighteen different Mass Relays and have colonized over thirty different planets. The census reports that the amount of humans reaches over three billion. Earth has a smaller population of about fifty million, due to limited resources, but the Earth is being slowly transformed back into a friendlier place by G.E. . Space Stations are being built in each Alliance system in order to house more people.

2500-Humanity has colonized around fifty planets and numbers just over seven billion humans. This marks the time when the human population surpasses the Pre-War one. Human repopulation slows. Average life expectancy rises to around one hundred and forty years. Big Mountain continues to be the Alliance's chief research facility, while London continues to serve as the Alliance's capital.

2554-John Shepard and Jane Shepard, son and daughter of Captain Hannah Shepard, are born. Their father is Desmond Shepard, a descendant of the Lone Wanderer. Desmond and Hannah are both high ranking officers in the Alliance, both with the Marines and the Navy.

2557-The Alliance finds a new Mass Relay near their colony of Shanxi. As with protocol, the First Fleet, numbering over seventy-five vessels, is in orbit over Shanxi. Captain Hannah Shepard,along with her two kids, both of whom are only three years old, are stationed on the SSV Armageddon. Around nine billion humans now inhibit Alliance space, which consists of over seventy colonies. Mass Relay 314 is now being activated.

First Contact is made. Unfortunately, it results in hostility. The Alliance loses the five frigates it sent through the Mass Relay, and the Turians, as they are known, launch an invasion with over two hundred ships, thinking they have stumbled on the human homeworld. The First Contact War has now begun.

* * *

_"Just give me the key, I'd hate to see you bleed to death."_

_Lone Wanderer to President Kimball, shortly before the President's death. _

General Adrien Victus was not a foolish man. The Hierarchy had fired at a group of six ships that had activated the Mass Relay. But the six cruisers that General Desolas Arterius had sent had been decimated. How had six ships, five of them frigates, were able to take on the cruisers. The General shook his head, as he monitored the galaxy map. Mass Relay 314, as it was known, was the gateway to wherever they were going. Two hundred ships of the Turians Fifth Fleet, along with six dreadnoughts, one of which he was aboard right now, the Invincible, were going to show the strength of the Turians.

But six cruisers had been destroyed. Six. Cruisers were not easily destroyed. It had taken a dreadnought mass accelerator cannons to take them out, so Palaven Command had deemed it necessary to take the Fifth Fleet and punish these new species.

The two hundred ships were in battle formation, ready to hit whatever these aliens could throw at them. As they exited FTL, the two hundred ships just appeared right outside weapons range for the dreadnoughts.

"Sir!" a weapons control officer yelled from his terminal.

"What is it?" the General asked in response. The weapons control officer gulped.

"Alien vessels are charging their weapons and have raised their kinetic barriers. At least seventy-five vessels, six of them dreadnought class. Ships will be in range in three minutes."

"Six dreadnought class ships? That is as many as us. Have Desolas take control of the vanguard of the fleet. I want his dreadnoughts firing as soon as we enter weapons range," he ordered, and the officers in the CIC went to do their duty.

"Sir, General Corinthus is preparing the gunships and the dropships to head to the surface. He's asking for orders."

"Tell to take control of the main city. Scans show that there is few hundred soldiers in the surface, should not be difficult for a soldier of the Hierarchy. The enemy fleet will soon be destroyed. This world will soon fall to the hands of the Hierarchy."

* * *

Major General Williams was in his own headquarters, in the capital city, well the only city, on Shanxi. Stirring his coffee, he saw five men of the Black Guard scurry on by. The Black Guard were the premier elite fighting force of the Alliance. Encased from head to toe in black power armor, with their devilish horns and their evil, ominous, yellow eyes, a company of Black Guard could hold off an enemy ten times its size, until either they were dead, the enemy was dead, or reinforcements arrived.

"Sir, Admiral Edwards has reported that dropships and gunships are heading towards the planet. Strength seems to be at least double the garrison," and Williams cursed. His garrison was a molten of local militia, Black Guard, and Marines. Some power armored Super Mutants were there, along with members of the Stealth Corps, but they were too few. The Marines were heavily armed, their weapons still the same from hundreds of years ago, just they kinetic barriers and instead of firing regular bullets, they fired mass accelerator rounds. See how humanity adapted?

"Sir, Major Red and his Marines have fortified the northern part of the city. Colonel Adams and the Black Guard are being positioned in the western part, while local militia has taken position in the east and south. General Williams shuddered, due to militia not being that well trained. They composed the majority of the forces they had. Most of his forces were waiting underground until the fighting would begin, so it appeared that they only had a few hundred. Soon, a plan was forming in his head, a plan that would tip the scale of balance into his favor.

"Have the forces underground remain so. Tell the Armor Corps to get the Super Mutants in position around the headquarters. The Stealth Corps is to remain on the buildings and snipe any enemy that looks important. How is air support looking?"

"Captain Summers is reporting that his squadron of Vertibirds will be ready to go when the fighting happens," his intelligence officer said to him. He nodded his thanks before looking at his guards.

The Marines were tough sons of bitches, and made great guards. Loyal and fierce, the Marines had been guarding important people since the days before the war. Encased in blue combat armor and wearing helmets that covered their entire faces, the three Marines that made up his guard were at attention, waiting for the order.

"Lieutenant, take your men and ready my transport. Time to see what these jackasses can do."

* * *

Ranger Black was situated on top of one of the biggest buildings on Shanxi. Called the House Industrial Tower, it was designed to withstand a 9.5 magnitude earthquake and a nuclear strike. Standing over fifty stories tall, the Ranger readied his Anti-Material Rifle. The .50 caliber round would easily be able to take down whatever decided to make his way.

So when the first enemy forces landed, even though anti-aircraft fire had taken down a few of their transports, he was ready. The first enemy was wearing a helmet, but he was taken aback from what the enemy looked like.

They seemed...surprisingly human. They all looked to be over six feet tall, but with hands that looked more like talons, but they handled weaponry with discipline. The transport then climbed to over thirty thousand feet before speeding away, but a vengeful anti-aircraft battery shot right out of the sky. The enemies began walking down the street on foot, their weapons ready. Peering from his scope a mile away, he readied it, and decided to take out their sniper.

"Welcome to Shanxi, you alien bastards," and he squeezed the trigger. The round, being pushed out of the rifled chambered by pressurized gasses, sped out with a speed that amazed him. It would take about four seconds before the round impacted on his target. He worked the bolt, chambering in a new large caliber round, while the small smoke cloud that had erupted from the barrel dispersed.

He watched as the fifty caliber round entered the sniper's head, and soon brain matter spelt out, followed by what could be described as blue blood. The squad of enemies looked around, trying to find the bastard that had shot their own bastard. Snipers were cursed on the battlefield, and for good reason. If you were to die, it was because the bastard that shot you was a good fighter, not some invisible bastard from a mile away. The enemy was blown back from the force of the round and was soon on the ground, while the rest of the squad took cover behind buildings.

Black cursed, for he was unable to get them from that angle. He swept his scope, looking for any bastard that was not in cover, and then he saw one. A bastard had gotten cocky and was soon trying to find the smoke trail from the sniper rifle. He smirked, knowing that was probably the sniper's spotter. Rangers in the Stealth Corps didn't need to act like that. His tattered duster billowing slightly in the wind, he lined another shot, aiming straight for the spotter's chest.

"Peek a fucking boo, I see you!" he whispered into the wind, and squeezed the trigger. The bullet once more erupted from the chamber of the anti-material rifle, and propelled to speeds that outmatched the reaction times of the spotter, the massive round entered straight into the spotter's ornate silver armor and exited out the back. A large gaping hole was now situated where the spotter's chest had once been. Blue blood leaked out, and then a small squad of Black Guard appeared, the magnificent assholes in black, as he liked to call them, their laser weaponry cutting down two enemies without even blinking. The remaining aliens, numbering only five, returned fire, but the mass accelerator rounds were met by the kinetic barriers of the Black Guard.

Black watched has his comrades mowed down the aliens without difficulty, taking the five with no effort. He watched with curiosity that the laser weaponry just ignored the kinetic barriers like they were nothing. A smirk soon appeared on his face, as he activated the stealth system on his Ranger armor. Soon, the black combat armor clad warrior left the building, before making his way to another one. But before he left, one of the Black Guard looked up and waved, receiving a chuckle and a wave in return.

Finding himself on another building, he chambered a new round into his rifle, before his radio started. Usually he had it turned it off, due to it just being a bunch of commanders yelling orders, or privates asking for air support. He watched as a Vertibird fire its missiles straight into an enemy squad that had managed to pin down a squad of militia. The militia were just wearing regular clothing or leather armor, armor that wouldn't last a day in the military, but these folks were fighting for their lives. The Vertibird soon started to play something from its speakers.

The Ride of the Valkyries. Ranger Black smiled as Marines started to rope down from the Vertibird, the squad of militia cheering as the aliens were killed easily by the volley of missiles.

The Battle of Shanxi had started. And soon, it would be ending.

CODEX UPDATED

ENTRIES ADDED

The Systems Alliance: The Alliance is the government body that rules over all of humanity, Super Mutants, Ghouls, and any other sentient being in its territories, such as the few intelligent deathclaws. The only parts of the Sol System that the Alliance do not control are highly irradiated zones, such as half of China, and most of Africa. The Alliance has evolved over the years, starting out as an alliance between the Enclave and the Brotherhood of Steel just eighty years prior.

The governing body of the Alliance is Parliament, elected officials that pass laws that affect the entire Alliance. Individual colonies are ruled by governors and their elected body. The Alliance controls over thirty colones, and numbers in the billions. Hundreds of thousands of them are Super Mutants, due to volunteers of Project MUTATION, an effort that saw the sterility of the Super Mutants cured and the feral nature that ghouls would one day suffer neutralized. The Systems Alliance has made first contact with the Turians and are now engaged in a war with them.

The Alliance Military: Composed of four branches, the Army, Air Force, Navy, and the Marines, the Alliance Military is perhaps one of the finest militaries in the Milky Way. Marines handle security onboard the Navy's ships and are also the first boots on the ground during an assault on a planet. The Army is the main ground forces, taking care of the internal and external security needs of the Alliance. The Air Force is composed of all the air units of the Alliance Military, bar the Vertibirds of each respective branch, plus their own fighter squadrons. The Navy handles all space warfare and is in control any planets orbital weapons, such as the Zion Weapon Systems in orbit around Shanxi.

_So now, the battle of Shanxi will commence. Will hopefully be back shortly with a new chapter soon. I like to thank erttheking for inspiring to write this. If you hadn't checked out his story, From the Ashes, you should. Really good. _

_Update 8/24/13_

_The timeline has been updated, due to popular demand. Thank you all for your input. And to WTF, it is in the crossover section, don't worry your life about it. I do label my stories. _


	2. And The Fleets Shall Clash

First, I would just like to thank all of you for your support! Nineteen reviews, 75 favorites, and 115 follows! I did fix the timeline, so please reread the first chapter. Also, two thousand hits! DAMN!Here is the next chapter for, And So We Rise.

* * *

_"It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, "Peace! Peace!" — but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!"_

_-Patrick Henry, 1775_

The SSV _Armageddon _was one of the oldest ships in the Alliance Navy. Constructed fifty years after the discovery of the ruins on Mars, the _Armageddon _was the first dreadnought in the Alliance Navy. It was equipped with mass accelerator cannons able to fire a twenty kilogram slug at speeds of nearly 4050 kilometers per second; about 1.2 percent the speed of light, while reloading quickly every two impact from one of those slugs could put more than three times the yield of the bomb dropped on Hiroshima. The _Armageddon _was due to be decommissioned at the end of the year.

Her mass accelerator cannons fired in anger for the first time. Her main gun boomed, the noises it made were sweet on Captain Hannah Shepard's ears. The thirty-five year old woman had sent her two children to Shanxi just five hours ago, in order to keep them safe on the service. As her dreadnought's laser batteries swatted an entire pack of frigates out of the sky, sending them spiraling towards the orbit of Shanxi, she smiled grimly.

"Mam, kinetic barriers holding at seventy percent!" cried an Ensign and she stood up, watching the main battle. The newer dreadnoughts and cruisers were firing their laser weapons, weapons made for ship to ship combat and not just swatting high amounts of fighters and missiles out of their hypothetical skies.

"Target lead enemy heavy!" she ordered, and the gunnery officer complied. Five seconds later, the main cannon boomed, streaking towards the main dreadnought of the enemy. The lead enemy dreadnought was fearsome, looking similar to the design that the Alliance used. Two seconds later, after streaking across a blank expanse of space filled with ships, lasers, mass accelerator rounds, and other things, it smashed into the kinetic barriers of the lead dreadnought. The barriers flexed, before two seconds later, another slug slammed into the hull. Two seconds after that, the third slug slammed into the barriers, breaking through them.

"Enemy heavy kinetic barriers down Captain! Wolfpack Alpha is moving in for the kill!" the First Officer announced. She watched as four frigates dive straight into the fray, avoiding the high intensity rounds from the enemy target them. Javelin anti-ship missiles soon left their missile pods from the frigates as they slammed straight into the dreadnought, leaving it a fiery desolate hull. Two of the four frigates fell to mass accelerator rounds from cruisers, but then a high intensity laser, focused and determined, emitted from the SSV _Everest, _the flagship of the Second Fleet.

The laser beam cut straight through two dreadnoughts as if they were not there, before moving over. Three cruisers fell to the beams onslaught, and Captain Hannah Shepard was feeling just a bit jealous at Admiral Edwards being able to do that. With technological jumps, they had been able to fit high intensity laser weapons that fired a continuous beam that was able to slice through the kinetic barriers easily.

"Captain, three of the six enemy dreadnoughts have been destroyed. The enemy fleet now numbers just about one hundred ships," the pilot of the dreadnought announced. She cursed under her breath. Despite the technological and the better trained crews, the enemy's superior numbers and firepower was beginning to become apparent. Despite the fact that only one of the six Alliance dreadnoughts had been destroyed, the enemy's firepower was beginning to tear through the Alliance Navy's numbers.

Over thirty ships had been lost -most of them frigates that had fallen victim to the anti-fighter laser batteries onboard the enemy ships- though some of them were cruisers and the SSV _St. Elias, _a dreadnought,victim of the first volleys fired. Thousands on both sides were dead, though the enemy was getting the worse of it. Both fleets were withdrawing now, the cruisers of both sides playing rearguard. The enemy cruisers got the worse of it, as the gauss cannons placed on cruisers ripped through the enemy's kinetic barriers, punching through them easily and destroying half of the enemy squadron.

Both fleets withdrew. The Alliance withdrew to near an asteroid belt that separated Shanxi from the fifth planet of the solar system, while the Turians withdrew to where the Mass Relay was. Both fleets were bloodied. It was still anyone's game, but it seemed that the Hierarchy had finally met someone who could match them.

* * *

"Launch fighters," and the captain of the SSV _Einstein _quickly acknowledged the order from the Admiral. Soon, hundreds of fighters resembling the old fighters of the Pre-War world known as Earth, entered the black darkness of space, their thrusters allowing them to quickly rocket towards the skies above Harbin, Shanxi.

* * *

"Sir looks like the Navy's whopping ass out there!" commented a private, as the five man squad rushed through the northern district. Commander Mark Shepard of the Black Guard and his men were taking cover behind a fallen column, waiting as enemy armor and troops were making a mad dash for the city center. Why they did so, he did not know, but with his wife up in the _Armageddon _commanding one of the fifty dreadnoughts in the Alliance Navy, he was proud of them.

"Contact!" yelled the sergeant, before mass accelerator rounds impacted on Commander Shepard's kinetic barriers. They whined as they felt the impact of each round. But he ignored the mass accelerator rounds as they continued to slam into him. He simply shrugged them off, before opening fire with his weapon.

A H&K L30 Gatling laser. The barrels of the gatling laser glowed hot red as he walked forward, the gun emitting high speed lasers. Two enemy foot mobiles were dead, their kinetic barriers and armor offering no protection as the swathes of laser fire cut through them. Soon, the boom of a gauss rifle entered the fray, most likely a marksman on top of one of the buildings of the city. One Hierarchy soldier tried to gun down Commander Mark Shepard, but he was just met with the end of the barrel of the gatling laser.

Commander Mark Shepard was the descendant of Major Samantha Adams and the Lone Wanderer, both of them badasses when all the humans had were a radiation filled world that went to shit. His heritage was both Brotherhood and Enclave.

"Enemy contact, twelve a'clock!" yelled a corporal, before he was engulfed in a volley of mass accelerator fire. He came out unharmed however, his armor, the Advanced Power Armor Mk 5, easily keeping him protected. Six Hierarchy soldiers entered the fray, spraying and praying. Dozens of rounds were exchanged. The booming of the gauss rifle, laser rifles, and mass accelerators echoed throughout the block. But in the end, the Alliance prevailed.

All throughout the city, fighting was raging. The Hierarchy's overwhelming numbers were matched by the tenacity of the defenders. The enemy also had overwhelming air superiority, their shuttles and gunships numbering in the hundreds. Especially the gunships were dangerous, Commander Shepard admitted grudgingly. The VB-02 was still a hell of a platform, but there were only a few on Shanxi, and not enough to turn the tide of battle. The F-23 Watchers could easily turn the tide, but they were all tied up on the _Einstein,_ a carrier.

Carriers were new to the Alliance Navy. Wanting to find a way to be able to overwhelm enemy point defense turrets, the carrier was created to carry hundreds of fighters that fill the air with thousands of missiles, an amount that could easily overtake almost every laser turret system in existence. Only six carriers were in commission, while three more were under construction in the shipyards around Eden Prime. The _Einstein _was the most famous, having faced their trial by fire during a pirate suppression campaign a few years back.

"Sir, I just got word from the General! He wants us to regroup on Bourbon Street down in the Market District!" a private yelled. Commander Shepard nodded before turning to his men.

"MOVE OUT!"

* * *

Dr. T'Soni was truly fascinated with the culture of this new species. Having been aboard a Turian scientific vessel, one of the few in existence, she had gotten permission from the Hierarchy to tag along, as they say. She was fascinated. Truly, they knew how to build beautiful buildings.

The one that she was in was made of stone, beautiful frescos painted with rich colors, that vibrated. She was in tune, when she did not see the man in brown robes.

"Enjoy it much?" someone asked and she spun around, her arms filled with biotic energy. But all she saw was an old man in brown robes, slightly hunched. He had just spoken Asari, and she was surprised.

"How can you speak my language?" she asked and the man chuckled.

"The ones who created the Mass Relays left behind items that allow me to do so. Welcome to St. Michaels," the man said warmly and she smiled. The man looked oddly like her, just wrinkled and with hair, along with fair skin.

"How old are you?" she asked and the man chuckled again.

"Older than you are. I was there when the Courier and the Lone Wanderer met, I was there when all of these events transpired. I am say...Four hundred years old? Four hundred and fifty?" he asked himself. He then chuckled once more.

"Who are you?" she asked, coming closer to the man.

"I am the Vault Dweller. And welcome to my humble home."

* * *

"How goes the battle?" asked Saren. Desolas looked at his fleet, half of it destroyed. Dreadnoughts, the most powerful ships in existence, destroyed easily by a damn laser weapon that originated from another damn dreadnought! His fleet was bleeding and his younger brother knew it.

"Bad. We lost a hundred ships, including three dreadnoughts. Losses are projected in the thousands Saren. Our ground forces are doing no better. As soon as we withdrew, the enemy sent hundreds of fighters to the surface. I sent three frigates to help combat them, but it will not be enough. I have word from Command that the Third and the Fourth Fleet will soon join us. Hopefully we will have defeated these new galactic upstarts and that this is not just a colony world. We may have another Rachni Wars on our hands," the elder brother said.

"These people have laser weapons that are not just for anti-fighter role. They have lost half of their fleet as well, but it is still anyone's fight. For the first time since the Rebellions, we face a foe that may have the ability to defeat us. A foe that is dangerous and must be sufficiently cowed so that the Citadel will make sure that they will not dominate over us. We are the Citadel's protectors and we shall show these...humans, that we do not fear them," and as he said that, his first officer shouted.

"SIR! Three hundred new contacts just exited FTL!" and he smiled, for he knew that was his reinforcements.

"Are they the fleets I requested?" he asked and the First Officer grew pale.

"No sir...its the enemy. They have launched hundreds of fighters and the original enemy fleet is moving to attack again. The Third and the Fourth are due to arrive for another hour."

"May the Spirits help us all."

* * *

Alliance Navy: The Alliance Navy is considered to be the most important branch of the military, due to it being responsible for all space warfare and for deploying ground forces against planets. The Navy has fifty dreadnoughts, over three hundred cruisers, and almost five hundred frigates. Six carriers have also been added to the Navy, while an additional three are being built in shipyards. The fleet is divided into five. The First Fleet, responsible for protecting the Sol System and the adjacent systems, while the rest are spread throughout the System Alliance, protecting them all. Shanxi is the most recent of all the colonies, such that the Second Fleet, undermanned due to ships being moved to supplement the building of a new space station on the other fringes of Alliance Space.

Carrier: The Carrier was a radical new idea to the Alliance Navy. Seeing how space pirates were beginning to get an edge, using smaller, faster spacecraft, faster than even the Alliance Frigate, it was soon apparent that something was needed to get the Air Force's fast interceptors into space in order to allow for the destruction of these spacecraft. Banking on a new idea, the F-23 Watchers of the Alliance Air Force, several squadrons, were transferred to the SSV _Tesla _the first carrier in the Alliance. Piracy fell by half when the Carrier was first deployed, their fast interceptors chewing up the pirates. In time, the F-23 Watchers would be joined by the A-20 Marauder and the B-5 Boomerang, in order to address all components of space warfare and to allow for carriers to gain a greater share of Close Air Support missions, strategic bombing(As the Peace and Liberty Pact of the early days of Alliance Navy did not allow for orbital bombardment), and Air Superiority over major battlefields. _  
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Vault Dweller: After the events of 2161, the Vault Dweller created a new settlement and eventually fell in love with Pat. After Pat died, the Vault Dweller left Arroyo, roaming the wastes, despite being older than he was fifty years before. In 2211, he found the Mojave Wasteland, but not before crashing his car and being abducted by certain individuals. His travels are the stuff of legend, and he is but a myth, but there are whispers that he still lives, despite being in his hundreds.


End file.
